Amusement device.



J. J. TANNER.

AMUSEMENT DEVICE. APPLIOATIOK FILED in 26, 1909.

Patented Oct. 26, 1909.

UNITED STATES PATE T O I some neon or cnmromn. I

Specification Letters Patent.

Patented Oct.

Application fled m as, 1000. mm 10. 4os,4c4.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN Jnoon TANNER, citizen of Switzerland, residingat Petaluma, in the county of Sonoma and State of California, haveinvented new and useful Im-- provements in Amusement Devices, of whichthe following is a s ecification.

My invention re ates to amusement devices, and pertains particularly toa novel form of basket ball.

The invention consists of the parts and the construction and combinationof parts as hereinafter more fully described and claimed, havingreference to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a frontelevation, partly broken away. Fig. 2 is avertical transverse section,

the throwing device being shown in elevathe chamber 3 practically in avertical plane,

and with the least amount of side movement of the ball possible. Thechamber 3 has adjacent to one vertical side a partition 5,

which forms a vertical chute 6 up through which the ball is adapted. tobe projected by the hammer or throwing device 7 located in the base ofthe apparatus. This throwing device is here shown as consisting of thehammer 'device 7 fulcrumed between its ends at 8, and with one endprojecting into the chute 6, and the other end acted on by a spring 9normally to project the throwing end upward.

The upward movement of the forward end of'the hammer is limited by asuitable sto provided by a ledge as 10, in the base, whi e thespring-connected end of the hammer is free to move up into dotted lineposition, shown in Fig. 3.

The ball 4 is adapted to rest on a suitable seat 11 and within the rangeof action of the hammer, when the latter is allowed to move from thedotted line position in Fig. 3 into full line position, and therebyimpel the bal forcibly upward through the chute 6.

Any suitable means may be provided to actuate the hammer, and as hereshown I provide a trigger 12, fulcrumed at 13,- and having a finger l4pivoted at 15, which finger and are rigid when in engagement withtheunder side of thehamm'e'r, 4 so as to tilt the latter, as shown in Fig.2 but after releasing the hammer, the tn r can reassume its normal'positionun er the action of the spring 16 by reason of the finger 14doubling up and riding over the roller 17 on the hammer. The trigger isoperated by suitable means as the lunger 18 and knob 19.

In operation, a bal 4 resting on .seat 11, is thrown by pushing down onthe knob 19 which causes the hammer 7 first to'be lifted by the trigger12 and its finger 14, and then on being released by the finger, thespring 9 gives a sudden impulse to the hammer to project the ball upwardthrough the chute 6. The ball then strikes the inclined upper wall 20 ofchamber 3, and is deflected horizontally for a short distance, and thenbegins to fall by gravity through the space in chamber 3,.and mayencounter various fixed pins 21 located in the upper part of the chamber3, and which pins will serve to de flect or-chan e the direction of theball. The ball may fal upon an annular series of fixed pins 22, and intoa basket'formed' by a pair of horizontally fixed pins 23, and a movablehorizontal pin 24, whereupon this will record .a certain score to thecredit of the player. Ifthe ball misses the basket formed by the pins2324, it-will pass on down, and may fall into one of the other basketsformed by a lower set of fixed ins 25, and movable pin 26, or it maydrop own into a series of baskets of lesser denomination, which lowerbaskets are represented by pairs of fixed pins 27 to correspond withthe'movable pins 28. If the ball misses these lower baskets it will passdownward on to the inclined runway 29, and will roll once more back toits seat 11, into line-with the hammer, ready to be projected againupward by the next player. In case the ball is caught in any of thebaskets formed by the respective sets of pins 2324, 25-26, 27-28, it isreleased by simply rocking a shaft 30 by means of an outside handle 31,each shaft 30 cont-inning across theback of the machine and carrying arespective movable pin 24, 26, or 28; each pin 24, 26, or 28, adapted tomove downwardly through a slot 32 in the back of the casing. Wheneverthe shaft 30 is rocked in the proper direction so as to release theball,

a spring 33 serves to turn the shaft in the opposite direction to againproject the pin outward into the path of the ball, and the tension ofthe spring being strong enough normally to maintain these movable pinshorizontal. I

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure byLetters Patent isv .1. An amusement device comprisinga suitable casinginclosing a thin, wide and long vertical chamber, a ball having adiameter slightly less than the thickness of said chamber, means forprojecting the ball through the chamber, and baskets within the chamberadapted to catch the ball, each of said baskets comprising aplurality ofplns projecting normally and horizontally across outside of the chamberfor releasing the bal from said baskets.

3. An amusement device comprising a suitable casing inclosing a thin,wide and long vertical chamber, a ball having a diameter slightly lessthan the thickness of said chamber, means for projecting the ballthrough the chamber, and baskets within the chamber adapted to catch theball, said baskets each comprising a plurality of pins projectingnormally horizontally across the chamber, one of said pins forming thebottom of the basket, being movable.

4:. An amusement device comprising a suitable casing inclosing a thin,wide and long vertical chamber, a ball having a diameter slightly lessthan the thickness of said chamber, means for projecting the ballthrough the chamber, baskets within. the chamber adapted to catch theball, said baskets each comprisin a plurality of pins projectingnormally orlzontally across the chamber, one of said pins forming thebottom of the basket being movable, andmeans for operating said movablepin to release the ball from the basket.

5. An amusement device comprising a suitable casing mclosmg a thin, wideand long vertical chamber, a ball having a diameter slightly less thanthe thickness of said chamber, means for projecting the belly throughthe chamber, and baskets within the chamber adapted to catch' the ball,said-'baskets each comprisingX a plurality of pins pro,- jectingnormally orlzontally across the chamber, one of said pins forming thebottom of the basket'being movable, said movable pin mounted on a rockshaft,'andlmeans operating on the rock shaft to maintainsaid pinnormally horizontal.

6. An amusement device comprising a suitablel'casing inclosing athin,wide and long vertical'chaniber, a ball having a diameter slightly lessthan the thickness of said chamber, means for projecting the ballthrough the chamber, baskets within the chamber adapted to catch theball, each of said baskets comprising a plurality of pins projectingnormally horizontally across the chamber, and each basket having amovable bottom member, said throwing means for the ball including aspring-actuated hammer, and a trigger for operating the hammer, withmeans for positioning the ball in the path of the hammer. I

7. In an amusement device, a ball throwingmeans comprising'incombination with a suitable chute or runway for the ball. a hammerhaving an end projecting into the chute, said hammer fulcrtimed betweenits ends, and acted on bya spring, and a spring pressed triggeroperative on the hammer.

8. In an amusement device, a ball throwing means COIIIPIlSlIlg 1ncomblnation with a projecting into-the chute and operative on the ball,a spring for normally maintaining the hammer in contact with the ball,and a trigger operative on the hammer and in chute, having a seat for aball, a'hammer opposition to its spring, first to move the hammer awayfrom the ball, and then to release it to allow the spring to act tocause the hammer to hit the ball. F

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my handin presence of twosubscribing witnesses. l

' J OHNJACOB TANNER. Witnesses: t

C. HALLAM COLE, E. G; BLASDEL.

